Each of the three institutions assesses a business school according to different criteria and scope:
AMBA (UK) accreditation examines the Master of Business Administration programme portfolio and is intended to show that this "demonstrates the highest standards in teaching, learning and curriculum design, career development and employability, student, alumni and employer interaction".[2]
AACSB (US) accreditation looks at the whole business school and is intended to "signify a business school's commitment to strategic management, learner success, thought leadership, and societal impact". There has been a greater emphasis on diversity and inclusion since the 2020 revision.[3]
EQUIS (Belgium) accreditation also looks at the whole business school, and is intended to "signal the school’s overall quality, viability and self-improvement commitment".[4]
While all three business school accrediting bodies operate worldwide, business schools in the US primarily pursue only AACSB accreditation. This is influenced by US business school perceptions that US accreditation is sufficient.
Additionally, the structure of US business schools often does not align with the European standards of AMBA or EQUIS. For example, AMBA accredidation criteria requires that all MBA students have a minimum of three years of post-graduate work experience. This is a criterion which the vast majority of the top US business schools cannot meet as US MBA programmes sometimes admit applicants with only a bachelor's degree and no work experience.[5]